India joined BRICS to forge economic cooperation: Anand Sharma

DURBAN: India today said it did not join the BRITS group to oppose others but to advocate closer cooperation among every nation to rebalance the global economy and distribution of political power.

Speaking on the sidelines of the BRICS Summit here, Commerce and Industry Minister Anand Sharma said the Summit was important in that it was taking place on the back of persisting economic instabilities.

"We will be looking at what we can do together, more than what we have done to boost economic activity," Sharma told The New Age daily.

"Key considerations will have to be finding ways of boosting confidence and capital formation across the globe," he added.

Sharma detailed plans for creating industrial development zones in a number of stand-alone townships in India.

"We want to create 100 million skilled jobs," he said, adding that this was critical to meet the socio-economic needs of the youth.

Asked whether South Africa could take lessons out of India's model of liberalising markets as it too tackles the problem of unemployed youth, Sharma said it was important to look at unique ground realities and socio-economic conditions locally.

The minister said that while BRICS members could share their development experiences, each member had its own distinct and different circumstances which would impact on the learning experience.

Sharma emphasised the critical role of beneficiation in the development process.

Commenting on the global governance system, Sharma said it was not acceptable that that the entire African continent, South America and a large portions of Asia had no representation on the UN Security Council.